This blog has nothing to do with gorillas (though I love 'em)...fellow bloggers have inspired me to share vintage images of Disneyland from my personal collection. But don't be surprised if you see something from a World's Fair, Knott's Berry Farm, or someplace else that is cool!

Saturday, April 03, 2010

The humble but lovable Keel Boat has probably been mostly forgotten by the general public (damn them!), but we superior beings remember it for its unique charms.

Let's start with this great photo of the Gullywhumper passing Cascade Peak while one of the yellow Mine Trains passes in the background. It still boggles my mind that Cascade Peak is actually gone. ("I thought Major Pepperidge seemed a bit boggled!", I hear you thinking).

A Keel Boat (not sure which one) is just about to vanish around the bend, already partially obscured by the Old Mill and a crowded raft.

Well, maybe that's the Bertha Mae over there, it has the day off. So does the Columbia. But the Mark Twain is as busy as ever with the Disneyland Band on deck; those military boys appear to be having a swell time!

9 comments:

Boggle me eyes, yes I did think that! After you mentioned it though, honest.

It's a lovely time on the river, 1966. Look at that cute - and cheery - yeller train passing serenely by the lamentably absent scenic of Nature's Wonderland, Cascade Peak.

Well there's Gully himself in his dorky hat and flannel, keeping his 'whumper boating on an even keel. His is not the only dorky hat aboard, while on lower decks hang two boys who are too cool for school. Or at the least smashingly overdressed.

That ain't the 'whumper in the 2nd pic, by gully. A real cowboy is standing where Billy the Kid was on 'whumper.

The shore in front of The Silently Looming Mansion are awash in orange flowers, the shore is speckled with lilly and that shows us folks who are really enjoying the Mark Twain. :D

Very true; there is a certain 'plastic' all be it still better than nothing look to the bend in the rivers area today. I am always amazed at how 'almost real' a well framed picture of the old mill area can look from this time period of the park.Walt was right (duh) we need more traffic here!

Why can't they rebuild both Cascade Peak AND Nature's Wonderland? Put some of it where the ranch and BBBQ are and then extend the rest of it out beyond the berm a bit. I love rollercoasters, but I would still rather ride thru Nature's Wonderland than go on Big Thunder....anytime!

I'd love to see Cascade Peak's return, but there's no way they are going to spend that kind of money on what is basically eye candy. And Nature's Wonderland is "old school", so it would never come back either. There's no interactivity (kids love interactivity!) or digital projections, and there are no fast thrills. Maybe they could make it "Kim Possible goes to Nature's Wonderland"!

Never give up, never surrender. There's enough land in that area to support another major attraction, maybe they would build a Cascade peak if it were background setting to a new experience. Maybe something a little slower that layers over the Big Thunder...